


Shards

by HersheyOtaku



Category: Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (Cartoon), Tangled (2010)
Genre: Blood, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Minor Injuries, Post Series, Whump
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-24
Updated: 2020-08-24
Packaged: 2021-03-06 17:34:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,343
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26092714
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HersheyOtaku/pseuds/HersheyOtaku
Summary: With her free-spirited preference for a barefoot lifestyle, it was only a matter of time before Rapunzel stepped on something she shouldn’t. Varian’s just sorry it happened in his lab.
Relationships: Rapunzel & Varian (Disney)
Comments: 6
Kudos: 75





	Shards

“Okay, so that wasn’t… _exactly_ the reaction I was hoping for…” Varian mused, peeking over the upended table he’d used to take cover. He pushed up his goggles and scratched his head as he surveyed the mess his latest experiment had created.

It wasn’t unusual for the royal engineer’s experiments to go awry in spectacularly explosive ways, and it certainly wasn’t uncommon for some of his equipment to end up being destroyed in the process. Still, once the smoke had cleared from the minor explosion of an especially volatile mixture of gaseous chemicals, he couldn’t help but frown at the shards of glass strewn across the workbench and floor. He was going to need a new beaker set and distiller, which was a pity…those had been such sturdy ones too.

Fetching a small broom, he cleared a path around the workbench before sweeping the glass off the wooden surface and into a bucket, careful to catch every piece so there weren’t any leftover shards. The last thing he wanted was for Ruddiger to walk across and get glass stuck in his paw.

He yelped when the door slammed open behind him, scrambling to not drop the bucket. He twisted around just in time to see one barefooted princess come rushing into the lab.

“Varian, I heard an explosion! Are you— _ah_!” Rapunzel cried out as her foot came down on a particularly large and jagged shard of glass, reeling back and barely managing to catch herself against the doorframe.

“Rapunzel!” Varian gasped, dropping the bucket with a jangling clatter as he rushed to her, glass crunching beneath his boots.

“V-varian—!” Rapunzel whimpered, one hand reaching for him as the other clawed at the wood beneath her fingers, her hip braced against the frame. Breathing hard, she curled her leg up in an attempt to keep her weight off of her injured foot.

Varian grasped her outstretched hand in both of his and gave what he hoped was a comforting squeeze as his wide blue eyes took in the glittering shard protruding from the bottom of her foot. His stomach flipped queasily as his gaze travelled from the thin rivulets of blood running from the puncture wound to the smeared red footprint on the stone floor, no doubt from Rapunzel accidentally putting too much pressure on her hurt foot at the shock of being impaled.

“Oh...oh no.” He quickly moved to wrap his arm around her waist to help support her, then bit his lip when he realized there was no way she’d be able to move without potentially stepping on another glass shard. “J-just hang on, I’ve got you. It’ll…it’ll be _fine_ , I promise.”

Coming to a swift decision, he ducked down and hooked an arm under her knees, lifting her off the ground with a soft grunt. He took a moment to adjust his grip before carefully picking his way across the floor, not wanting to slip and drop his friend.

Rapunzel sucked in a shuddering breath and buried her face in Varian’s neck as he carried her to his workbench, her fingers curling into the material of his vest. Her foot was _burning_ , the throbbing pain sharp enough to send aching pulses shooting through her leg.

Coming to the workbench, Varian set her on the edge of the hard surface, mindful to avoid jostling her foot. But when he tried to step back, he found that Rapunzel’s fingers had a tight hold on his vest, and she was still leaning into him, instinctively seeking comfort. Biting his lip, he gently took hold of her shoulders and guided her back so he could look her in the eye. “Rapunzel, I know that it…that it _hurts_ , but I need to check your foot. Please…let me?”

Rapunzel swallowed hard, hesitating for a few seconds before releasing him and moving her hands to her lap, her fingers bunching into the material of her skirt. “O-okay,” she whispered tightly, trying her best not to focus on the hot twinges of pain in her foot.

While he was by no means a medical professional, Varian knew some basic first aid, since he did work with some pretty dangerous chemicals and equipment. And while the sight of blood still made his stomach turn, he’d certainly gotten better about not passing out the way he did when he was younger, and could push past his discomfort in acute situations.

Kneeling down, Varian gently took hold of her calf and lifted her leg so he could see the bottom of her foot. The bleeding actually wasn’t too bad, the initial penetration had made it seem worse than it was. But there was still a pretty sizable piece of glass embedded in the ball of her foot, and from the way she was trembling, he could tell it was agony for her.

If he was honest, he was surprised that this was the first time something like this had happened to her. But it seemed after 22 years of foregoing shoes unscathed, her luck had finally run out.

But that didn’t make him feel any less guilty about it happening in _his_ lab.

Not wanting to touch the glass until absolutely necessary, he released her leg and stood to his feet. Taking a deep breath, he steeled himself to deliver news that, while inevitable, was still sure to be unpleasant for Rapunzel.

“Princess, I have to remove the glass, and…um, I’m not gonna lie it’s…it’s gonna hurt.” He found her hand and gave a sympathetic squeeze. “A lot.” His eyes searched hers, hoping she wouldn’t hold it against him.

Biting her lip, Rapunzel’s free hand wrung her skirt fretfully. The knowledge that pulling the glass free was going to hurt even _more_ was intimidating, but she knew it had to be done. And besides that…

She managed a weak smile and squeezed his hand back. “I trust you, Varian.”

Even though the circumstances weren’t ideal, Varian’s heart swelled at her unwavering faith in him. He couldn’t— _wouldn’t_ let her down.

He gently pressed his forehead to hers before pulling away so he could gather the necessary materials for the extraction.

As Varian hurried around his lab, Rapunzel wrapped her arms around herself, gently rocking in an attempt to soothe her nerves. She was briefly distracted when Varian stopped to have her take a dose of pain killer he kept handy in the lab.

“I don’t think it’ll take effect in time for the extraction, but hopefully it’ll help with the aftermath,” he told her apologetically, before hurrying back to making preparations.

It only took Varian a moment to sterilize the tools he’d need and fill a bucket with water, and then he moved back to the workbench where Rapunzel was perched. Almost as an afterthought, he stopped to grab a strip of leather from a drawer.

He set down his tools before offering the rolled up leather to her. “Here, princess. You’ll…you’ll want this.”

Rapunzel blinked in confusion, shifting her weight uncomfortably. “Why?”

“To, y’know, put between your teeth,” Varian said, baring his own and pointing at them for emphasis. “For the pain?”

“ _Ohhh_.” Rapunzel sucked in a tight breath and nodded, taking it from him. “Um, thank you.”

Varian didn’t really feel like she had much to thank him for at the moment, but he smiled at her anyway as he picked up a pair of sturdy pliers. “Just…just try to bear with me, okay?”

Placing the thick leather between her teeth, Rapunzel nodded, and he kneeled down and took her ankle in his hand, pulling her leg so he could clearly see the bottom of her foot.

Pinching the glass between the jaws of the pliers, he had to take a deep breath to steady himself. He could do this, Rapunzel needed him. “Okay, here we go…” Carefully, he started to pull the shard free.

Rapunzel gave a muffled cry, and Varian had to tighten his grip on her ankle to keep it completely still as her leg gave an involuntary jerk.

“It’s okay, it…it’ll be— _hrk_ —” Varian had to press his lips together tightly, his stomach lurching as the glass slowly slid from the bloody wound, though he managed to keep his hands steady. Just a little bit more…

Rapunzel gasped and whimpered behind the leather, her teeth digging into the thick material as she shuddered. It was taking everything she had not to kick at Varian to make him stop. He was _helping_ her, even if it sure didn’t _feel_ like it.

Varian had to wiggle the glass a tad to finally pull it free, wincing sympathetically at Rapunzel’s high-pitched yelp before he dropped the bloody shard, pliers and all, into an empty bucket.

“Okay, it’s out, Rapunzel,” he told her, patting her leg soothingly. “I’m just gonna clean—oh. Uh…okay so the antiseptic is _probably_ gonna sting, b-but after that I won’t have to do anything else that’ll hurt you.”

He glanced up to her face to make sure she was all right and jolted at the sight of tears sliding down her cheeks as she shakily pulled the leather from her mouth. Obviously he knew _why_ she was crying, but seeing it still wrenched at his heart.

Then he was on his feet, cupping her cheeks and wiping her tears away with his thumbs.

“Rapunzel, I’m sorry,” he whispered, guilt gnawing at his core. Sorry she’d gotten hurt in his lab, sorry he hadn’t done a better job of alleviating her pain, sorry he’d made her cry.

But Rapunzel smiled at him softly and placed a hand over his on her cheek. “Varian, you don’t have to be sorry,” she told him, her voice only catching a little. “You’re helping me.”

“But—” Varian found himself silenced by a finger placed over his lips, and he blushed as Rapunzel leaned in closer.

“No buts,” she told him firmly.

Taking a deep breath through his nose, Varian held it for a second before he finally nodded, and Rapunzel’s smile brightened as she let her hands drop into her lap. She didn’t want Varian to blame himself for any of this—it had been an accident, and now he was being so sweet with how he was helping her. He could have run off and tried to find someone else to help her—she knew he was squeamish when it came to blood—but instead he took it upon himself to take care of her.

Varian melted a little at the fond look she was giving him, but when she shifted and winced slightly he suddenly realized he hadn’t finished treating her foot yet, and he pulled back to do just that.

For the next few minutes he busied himself with disinfecting her wound, murmuring to Rapunzel soothingly when she sucked in a tight breath and squirmed at his ministrations.

For her part Rapunzel did her best not to react to the stinging antibacterial wash, or how even his gentle wiping and dabbing with a soft cloth caused small throbs of pain. But once he’d wrapped her foot snuggly with linen bandages, she could feel a marked difference, the once stinging pain reduced to a dull ache that only flared if she moved her foot a certain way. Or maybe the pain medicine was finally kicking in? Whatever it was, it was a relief, and she let out a sigh as she watched Varian clean up his tools and wash his hands before coming back to her.

“Are you…feeling okay now?” he asked as he approached, glancing down at her foot before meeting her eyes.

Rapunzel nodded. “I’m feeling _much_ better.” She reached out a hand and was pleased when Varian took it, giving an affectionate squeeze. “Thank you, Varian.”

Varian rubbed the back of his neck with his free hand. “Oh it…it was nothing.”

“Oh, but…” She glanced around the floor, realizing that there were still glass shards littered between them and the door. “Um…I might need some help getting out of here.”

Gulping, Varian couldn’t help but blush. He could only take that to mean she needed to be carried, and now that there was no urgency…

“Sh-should I go get Eugene to come carry you?” he asked, shifting his weight from one foot to the other.

Tipping her head to the side, Rapunzel quirked a brow at him. “Are you saying I’m too heavy for you?”

“N-no! Not at all!” Varian was quick to reassure her, holding up both hands in a placating gesture. “I-I just meant that since you’re okay now you might prefer—”

Rapunzel smiled, endeared by her friend’s flustered state. “Oh, so you’re just trying to get out of carrying me again, is that it?”

Varian’s eyes darted around the room before coming to rest on her again. “N-no?”

“Then I don’t see the problem.” She held out her arms to him expectantly. “C’mon, just one quick trip to the infirmary and then I’ll be out of your hair. Besides, Eugene’s busy running drills with the guard, and there’s no need to worry him when you took such good care of me.”

Well…he couldn’t argue with that logic. “All right.” He grinned at her as he looped an arm under her knees, bracing the other behind her back as he lifted her from the table. “But only because you twisted my arm.”

“Wow…you’re a lot stronger than I gave you credit for,” she said, holding her fingers to her mouth in feigned surprise as they moved towards the door.

“Heh, maybe I should add ‘princess lifting’ to my daily routine,” Varian joked, bobbing her a bit.

“Maybe you should,” Rapunzel agreed lightly.

They looked at each other for a moment, then burst out laughing, the sound carrying through the halls as Varian continued to carry her well past where the shards were scattered across the ground.

While the circumstances leading up to it weren’t ideal, Varian was glad to share a moment like this with Rapunzel.


End file.
